Cobblestone Shoe Hospital between Alamo Heights and Terrell Hills has acquired the assets of Central Shoe Repair. At xxxx is Gabriella Curbeira, niece of store manager Jesus Guzman, who has been filling in on Saturdays for eight months. less

Cobblestone Shoe Hospital between Alamo Heights and Terrell Hills has acquired the assets of Central Shoe Repair. At xxxx is Gabriella Curbeira, niece of store manager Jesus Guzman, who has been filling in on ... more

Photo: Photos By Yvonne Zamora / For No

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Cobblestone Shoe Hospital between Alamo Heights and Terrell Hills has acquired the assets of Central Shoe Repair. At xxxx is Gabriella Curbeira, niece of store manager Jesus Guzman, who has been filling in on Saturdays for eight months. less

Cobblestone Shoe Hospital between Alamo Heights and Terrell Hills has acquired the assets of Central Shoe Repair. At xxxx is Gabriella Curbeira, niece of store manager Jesus Guzman, who has been filling in on ... more

Photo: Photos By Yvonne Zamora / For No

Image 3 of 3

Shoe repair store provides clients a smooth transition

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It's a business that the social media generation might not be too familiar with, but according to Carroll Kelly, owner of Cobblestone Shoe Hospital, once you get a pair of your worn out shoes restored like new, you'll forever be a returning customer.

"We're trying to get the younger generation in this industry, because once you do it you stay,” Kelly said.

“There's so many things that people have and don't know that they can fix it.”

Kelly, who has been in the business of repairing shoes for more than 30 years, recently bought the assets of Central Shoe Repair Co., a local company that first opened in 1914.

At one time, Central Shoe Repair operated at seven locations, including a spot near the Alamo and in Alamo Heights.

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In May, Central closed its doors for good after its master repairman Eddie Salazar confirmed he was not able to return from cancer treatment.

All unclaimed items from Central Shoe were sent to one of Cobblestone's two locations, at 6318 N. New Braunfels Ave, and according to Kelly the recent acquisition and transition for customers has been positive.

"We've been doing this forever (repairing shoes), so we know how to service people, so the transition has been very positive,” Kelly said.

“It was very important to them (Central Shoe Repair Co.) that someone like us took that over, so that someone can take over in a real positive way.”

Cobblestone who promotes its services in local neighborhood publications, Yelp, CitySearch and even Groupon has generated new clientele since purchasing Central Shoe Repair Co.

According to Cobblestone manager Jesus Guzman, many former Central customers don't mind the change, while others stop by with hesitation.

Being the customer focused employee that he is, Guzman said he reassures them that they have nothing to worry about.

"Business has prospered quiet a bit. My part here is that the customers have a smooth transition,” Guzman said.

“They would kind of peak their heads through the door and they'd say, 'Is this the same Central?' You can see the expression on their face. I tell them that (Central's staff) retired, they no longer repair shoes, we bought the business and merged with Cobblestone.

“Then they're like, 'Well, are y'all as good as them?' And I say were as good if not better because we've been in business longer."

And in fact Cobblestone has been a mainstay in the shoe repair business for quiet some time. The company first opened in Houston under the name Shoe Hospital, in 1906, and has been a family affair for Kelly and his siblings. All together they own 25 stores in nine Texas cities.

It's everything from repairing a worn-out heal, refurbishing a suede and leather item, or even dying wedding shoes.

“If it's dead, we can bring it back,” Guzman said. Services today take between two to five days, and replacing a heel cap costs $10 while repairing the soles of a tattered boot could run you anywhere between $50 and $60.

Some might say that the shoe repair industry is a dying business. However, the idea isn't apparent to Kelly who owns all San Antonio and Austin locations.

“We're busier than we've ever been,” said Kelly, who also notes that a large percentage of customers are women.

"Probably 60 percent are women, we do lots of men shoes, but the whole shoe repair industry is driven by women.”

Mary Sadorsky, who was first introduced to Cobblestone by her hairdresser, said she was a former Central Shoe customer, and has been getting her shoes repaired for several years.

“I've always had a difficult foot, and when you get a pair of shoes that work - my God you don't release them - you just keep getting it repaired till it falls apart,” Sardorsky said.

According to Guzman, the most difficult thing facing the shoe repair business is finding a master shoe repair man, also known as cobbler who knows what they're doing. It's why Salazar had been so crucial to Central Shoe's operations in recent years.

“There's no vocational school, there's no online work — your either grandfathered in or either someone takes you underneath their wing,” said Guzman, who learned the craft of repairing shoes from his father in Guanajuato, Mexico. He prefers to be called a “zapatero,” a Spanish term for shoe repair man.

He added: “There's a lot of satisfaction in it, because when you come by to get your shoes and you say, 'Wow, that's awesome!' That's rewarding to me, because then I know that we did something right.”